TYLER, Texas — Multiple homes and businesses across Smith County saw significant damage due to Tuesday's storms -- from trees falling into homes to wind ripping the roof of a restaurant.
It was a wild wake-up call to many residents across East Texas as powerful storms rolled in. Smith County emergency responders went out to almost 300 calls this morning, and Oncor says it could take days to get power back on to some residents.
Tyler resident Aliyah Thatcher had gone to use the restroom minutes before the tree fell into the room she was in.
"All of a sudden, I hear this big boom," Thatcher said. "And we went upstairs, and we realized that the tree had fell on the bed that I was laying on just a few minutes ago."
She remembered believing the tree was really bad thunder that made the house shake.
The tree cut right through the middle of the roof leaving damage to the kitchen and dining room.
Thatcher said she is, "so grateful to God" to be alive.
Anetha Francis, who came into town to check in on her daughter and granddaughters, including Thatcher.
"A catastrophe. It’s amazing nobody got hurt just a blessing," Francis said.
Further north in Lindale, the roof of Pop’s Chicken ripped away like a band-aid.
"We thought it was going to be a regular thunderstorm," Pop's Chicken employee Eduardo Lopez said.
Eduardo Lopez said they were prepping for the day when a Lindale police officer told them to take cover.
"Later on it started picking up. The wind, the thunderstorm, the lighting everything," Lopez said.
The front of that roof fell on top of another co-workers truck – thankfully they didn’t loose power and stayed open.
Light poles were also tilted by the wind in the Lindale area with powerlines mingled in the branches.
Smith County Judge Neal Franklin said last week’s disaster declaration will be extended to include those who were affected by the Tuesday's storms.
"We continued that today and it will continue in place, and they will fit in this as well," Franklin said.
Franklin added to make sure to report any damage to the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Reporting the damage to the state doesn’t replace reporting damage to your insurance.